


Rooftops

by RescueSatellite



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Chat watches Ladybug become Marinette holy shit, I don't know how to tag things!, One Shot, Reveal!, Rooftop battle and a quick reveal, THIS IS A SERIES OF ONE SHOTS, There is no plot, enjoy anyway, it's like my warm ups or whatever, none of them go together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-23
Updated: 2017-12-12
Packaged: 2018-07-26 07:55:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7566214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RescueSatellite/pseuds/RescueSatellite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chapter One: After a long patrol, Ladybug and Chat Noir battle their latest akuma.<br/>Chapter Two: Nino figures out who the superheroes of Paris are and has to deal with their drama.<br/>Chapter Three: Marinette and Chat Noir are rejected by the loves of their lives, but find solace in unexpected places. Based on a comic by emzurl.tumblr.com</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

One shot

The beeping in her ears told her she was about to transform back. The akuma before them, relentless, was taking all of her attention away from the possibility of hiding to transform. She could feel Tikki around her, the energy that she had lost and needed to restore. But on the top of a large complex of buildings, there was nowhere to go.

Chat stood apart from her, across the large roof, thrown back by the powerful akuma. He looked over to her with concern in his eyes. He was constantly concerned for her, she knew, and it annoyed her. She was fine, she was fine.

"You need to transform, Ladybug," he called over the sound of the wailing akuma. Its voice pierced the quiet of the night and summoned police and news helicopters to shed the roofs with light for Ladybug and Chat Noir to take it down.

It had been well over an hour, and still, no progress had been made. They had no idea where the akumatized item was. Even if they did, the barreling fists that swung every which way, directionless, made it nearly impossible to get close. 

"There's no time, Chat!" Ladybug yelled back, annoyed not at him, but at the situation.

"That was three beeps, my lady. You have less than two minutes before the whole of Paris knows who you are."

They looked above them to where a news helicopter increased the noise of the night. Marinette growled to herself and cursed the akuma. 

This patrol had not gone like she had planned. 

She hadn't even used her lucky charm, and still Tikki was weakened from the long night. The adrenaline that raced through her kept her from being tired, but she knew the same couldn't be said for her kwami. 

As she watched the akuma with experienced eyes, she finally noticed a pattern. The lazy swings of the arms came two at a time, then once, and then twice again, ending with a brief pause. Her head swam with a plan. She didn't have time to explain it to Chat, as her earring beeped for the fourth time. She trusted him enough to use his instincts. 

The akuma swung its arms twice, and she looked over to Chat. They met eyes and nodded. She could always trust him to read her mind when in the heat of battle. 

The akuma swung its arms once, and she bent her knees to prepare herself to leap into action.

"Get ready, Chat!" she yelled across the rooftop. She noticed from the corner of her eyes that he had bent his knees as well. Their stances mirrored each other perfectly, in sync from years of battling together. 

The akuma was about to swing its arms twice again, with enough force to knock one of those helicopters out of the sky. 

"Now!" Ladybug yelled, and both leaped into action, powering toward the massive rock of an akuma. 

Marinette could feel the wind blowing her hair straight behind her, adding resistance to her run that she forced herself to power through. She approached the beast just as it swung once, and then twice. 

Her opening was clear, and she saw that Chat had made it within the radius of the monster's reach. He hit the akuma with all of his strength, and they watched the huge being take a step back at the blow. It barely moved.

Ladybug tried her hand, coming in feet first to try to knock the akuma off of theirs. She leapt through the air and with a grimace, felt herself connect with the akuma. 

As it flew backwards, she found her footing back on the ground. She watched in slow motion as it was picked up off of its feet and shoved through the air. She smiled victoriously and patted herself on the back. 

She wasn't watching the swinging arms anymore, and didn't see as one blind sided her, hitting her squarely in the chest. 

All breath left her body, and she stumbled backwards. She heard faintly the fifth and final beep in her ears as she felt the ground racing towards her. Her entire body was stiffened with the shock of the blow, and she didn't even feel herself hit the ground. Her head cracked against the pavement, her body lay motionless as Tikki broke her form around her chosen. 

She felt herself whisper her partner's name, the last thing she could do before she fell into unconsciousness.

Chat Noir looked up with victory in his eyes as he went to advance on the fallen akuma. He heard the loud thump and gusting breath of his lady, and instinctively looked over to her. He watched as one of the boulderish arms came crashing off of her, connecting with her chest as it fell away. 

He stared in a catatonic state of horror as his lady fell backwards, all wind knocked out of her, onto the roof. The last beep of her miraculous echoed to his ears, finding its way through the cacophonous night. With a burst of red and pink light, he saw her miraculous shed itself from her skin as she fell, finally collapsing into the roof, motionless.

The akuma forgotten, he sprinted fasted than he ever had over to where his lady had fallen. He no longer heard the chopping of helicopter blades or the screech of the akuma.

He saw before him, with bruises forming around her cheek, Marinette.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino figures out who the superheroes of Paris are and has to deal with their drama.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you electronicdelusionstarlight.tumblr.com for the suggestion. I had a lot of fun with this.

“You’re Chat Noir?!” 

It had been maybe a half hour since Adrien had first broke the news. Not that he’d really had a choice, since Nino had unwittingly followed Chat into his hiding place at the end of his transformation. 

He paced around the room, throwing his hands through the air in exasperation and disbelief, as he had been doing for a good time now. His hair was as ruffled as his shirt, his glasses crooked and his breathing shallow. 

“Yeah, we’ve established that.”

Nino flopped onto the ground his a loud breath, looking up to where Adrien sat on his bed. 

“Dude, that’s awesome.”

\-----

“You’re Ladybug?!”

“Nino?”

Marinette turned around where she had just transformed, staring towards where Nino stood at the end of an alley. 

“What the fu-”

“Nino!” She raced towards him, clasping a hand over his mouth. “You can’t tell anyone, do you understand me? It’s dangerous. Nobody can know who I am. Please. Promise me that you won’t tell anyone.” The worry in her eyes made Nino nod his head. 

A long-suffering sigh escaped her lips as she let his face go, her hands dropping to her side. 

“That’s two for two, I guess.” 

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I saw Chat Noir transform, too.” He shrugged.

“Wait, what? Chat let himself be seen?”

The two began walking out from between the buildings, their voices hushed as they entered a larger crowd. “Not exactly. Pretty much the same thing that happened just now happened with him. I should really stop taking shortcuts through alleys.”

\-----

The two superheros had made him promise not to tell anyone who they were. He was sworn to secrecy on the pain of death. Or just shunning. Nino didn’t know which was worse. 

On an excursion with the squad, Nino, Alya, Marinette, and Adrien went to a little cafe after school, ordering the same things that they usually did and sitting down to unwind after a long day. 

Nino studied the two friends he now knew were superheroes. Alya would absolutely tear into him if she caught a whiff of information from him, so he remained silent. He was never any good at keeping secrets, and now he felt like the weight of Paris rest on his shoulders. He wanted to explode with it. His best friends were superheroes. Damn.

They parted ways after the cafe, Nino and Adrien heading to Adrien’s mansion, Marinette and Alya heading over to Marinette’s house to study or do homework or some secret girl things. Adrien had recently told his father that he didn’t want to be driven around anymore when he could help it, so they walked to his house. Nino wished they could have driven; his feet were killing him. Gorilla drove close by with the car. 

“So you guys really haven’t told each other?” 

Adrien knew immediately what Nino was talking about. What else was there to say? The topic of conversation hung like a weight in between them. “Nope. We need to keep our identities secret or the people we’re close to could become targets.” Adrien shoved his friend with his shoulder. “So if you tell anyone, you’re dead. Literally.”

A smile played across Adrien’s lips. He didn’t really mean it, but it didn’t stop Nino from gulping. 

“That doesn’t really make me feel better.”

Adrien laughed as they turned into the driveway and made their way to his bedroom. 

\-----

“I have to tell you a secret.” 

Nino almost cursed into the phone. What could Alya possibly have a secret about? And why would she tell him? He was terrible with secrets! They hung over him and in him and he wanted to cry. 

“Y-yeah?” he choked out. He did not want to hear this. “What’s up?”

Alya took a deep breath over the phone. “It’s about Marinette.”

Nino nearly spat out his drink. Did she know? What was she talking about? Of course she couldn't know! Marinette said that no one else knew, that they would all be in danger if they knew. What could she possibly be talking about? Why did he have this secret? Why did he take alleyways as shortcuts? Was it really worth it? He gained like thirty seconds, tops. 

“Yeah?” His spare hand rubbed his eyes really hard. His heart pounded faster than it had any right to. 

“She…” another deep breath. 

Just spit it out!

“Has a crush on Adrien.”

Nino wanted to faint with relief. Oh, god. She didn’t know. The secret was safe. 

Wait. 

“Nino, you can’t tell anyone. She swore me to secrecy. She made me promise I wouldn't tell anyone, but it’s a big secret, you know? We’re always with each other, and she’s so far gone, it’s kind of adorable. But you can’t tell anyone, especially Adrien, you got it? Nino?”

His eye was twitching. 

Marinette had a crush on Adrien. Adrien had a crush on Ladybug. Marinette was Ladybug. Adrien was Chat Noir. They… had crushes on each other? But neither of them knew it. 

“I’m gonna have a heart attack,” he breathed into the phone. 

“Nino? Are you okay?” Concern met his ears.

“Yeah, I’m fine. That’s just…. A lot to take in, you know?”

Alya thought for a minute. “I mean, not really, but okay. You’re not gonna tell anyone, right?”

“Nope. Sworn to secrecy. Got it. Don’t tell anyone.” Nino hung up the phone and flopped face-first onto his bed. 

\-----

Ladybug and Chat Noir rushed through Paris on their patrol, swinging and jumping and stopping petty crimes all while searching for any signs of Hawkmoth, maybe to stop an akuma attack prematurely. By the time they were about to end their transformations, they stopped at the edge of a rooftop overlooking the Tower. Chat wrung his hands together nervously, and Ladybug had the same energy about her. 

They both had something to say. 

“Chat,”

“My Lady,”

“You can-”

“No, you go-”

“I just-”

“Please, I insist-”

Ladybug held her hand up with a slightly impatient smile. “Chat. You go first.”

He realized then that he wanted her to go first. He wanted to delay the inevitable. Would she be mad? They had made this promise to each other pretty much right as they met each other. Nobody was supposed to know their identities, for the good of their safety and the safety of those they cared about. 

“I… um. I have to tell you something.” His fingers ran between each other. His claws dug into the leather of his suit. “It was totally an accident, neither of us meant to- I mean, it just happened- and he said that he wouldn't say anything- I just thought that you should know- we told each other not to- I’m so sorry-”

“Chat!” Ladybug stopped him with a hand to the shoulder. “What are you saying?”

“Someone saw me transform.” Her eyes went wide. “I’m sorry. It was an accident. Neither of us really wanted to know, but it happened, and now he knows that I’m Chat Noir, and, you know, who else I am. I’m sorry, my Lady. It was a mistake.”

Her arms flung around him and he stopped talking. She stepped back, with brightness in her eyes where he thought he would see darkness. “Chat, it’s okay. The same thing happened to me. That’s what I wanted to tell you. He surprised me, but he said that he won’t tell anyone.”

“Really? You’re not mad?”

“Oh, Chat. I mean, it was bound to happen eventually, right. But I know him, and I know he won’t tell.”

“You know him?”

“Yeah, he’s a friend.”

“Oh. That’s… good.”

“So. Who saw you?”

“A guy I know.”

“You know yours, too? What’s his name?”

“Nino.”

Something inside Ladybug broke. 

\-----

A tap came at Nino’s window and he drug himself across the room to check it out. If the tree branches were getting too long again, he would have to go out and pru-

Chat Noir was staring at him through the window, his face squished to the glass. 

“Nino, open the window,” Chat - Adrien - whoever, said.

He rushed forwards and pushed the window open, letting the superhero, his friend, the savior of Paris, the dorkiest person he had ever met, spill into his room. “What’s up?” Was that lame? He didn’t really know what to say in this situation. 

“Hey.” Chat transformed then, and Nino was tempted to hide his eyes. He wasn’t supposed to see him! What was he doing! He’s a superhero! Adrien stood before him, a tiny black cat floating next to his face. “I wanted to introduce you to Plagg. He’s my kwami. The thing that gives me my power.”

“The god that gives you your power. Nice to meet you, Whoever You Are. Do you have any cheese? It smells like cheese in here.”

“No… that’s just. How it smells?” 

“Gross, dude.”

“That thing can talk?” Nino whispered as the tiny flying thing went deeper into the room. 

“Yeah. I wish he couldn’t. It would be a lot easier to deal with him.” A fond look crossed Adrien’s face. 

“So, what’s up?”

“Oh. I don’t know, I just wanted to come over. Is that okay?”

“Yeah.” The two ended up playing video games for hours. Nino’s mother came up to ask if he wanted anything and discovered Adrien sitting there. It wasn’t an uncommon occurrence, but she was surprised. 

“Adrien! I didn’t see you come up.”

“I let him in, mom.”

“Oh. Well, do you boys want anything?”

“We’re okay, mom, thanks.”

Adrien wanted something, but Nino spoke too soon, and his mom slipped behind the door. With a frown, Adrien went back to killing Nino in Mortal Kombat. “So, how’s Alya?”

“Wait, what?” Nino sputtered. 

“Oh, come on. You know you have a crush on her.” 

“Dangerous territory, dude. What about you and Ladybug? I knew you had a crush on her, I just didn’t know that you guys were so… close.” Nino nudged Adrien with a shoulder and Adrien nudged back, harder. 

Nino thought about the whole situation for a second until his head started to hurt. 

Adrien sighed. “Sometimes, I wish I knew who she was, you know, without the mask. But we both know it’s better to keep our identities a secret.”

“Why can’t she know? I mean, it’s not like you guys would tell anyone else.” Nino focused on stabbing Adrien’s avatar instead of focusing too hard on the conversation. His head still hurt. 

“It’s more complicated than that.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah. But, I mean, you’re lucky.”

“Lucky?” Nino paused the game and turned to Adrien. “Dude, I wish I could go back to not knowing. You two are ridiculous! If you really want to know, just ask. The situation had changed. And now everything is so complicated and dude, you’re the lucky one. I hate dealing with this.” With a huff, he turned back to the game. 

“Sorry.” 

That sad puppy look that Adrien was famous for came across his face. Nino felt bad immediately. “Dude, don’t look like that. I’m sorry, I’m just not good with secrets. Yours and Marinette’s and Alya’s which is also Marinette’s and everything revolves around you two and it’s so complicated, dude!”

“Wait, what’s Marinette’s secret?”

“What?”

“You said Marinette had a secret.”

“No, I didn’t.” 

“Yeah, you did.”

“What’s her secret?”

Nino focused determinedly on the video game, but Adrien paused it and he was forced to keep the conversation going. “It’s a secret. I can’t tell you.”

“Okay, then what about Alya’s secret.”

“Dude! I can’t tell you.” He wanted to. It would be much easier to just let it slip. He was under pressure! He’s not good under pressure. And Adrien wouldn’t tell anyone anyway. 

“Tell me!”

Nino flung his controller on the floor and shoved a pillow over his head, shouting to himself so he couldn't hear Adrien. He was gonna tell him. He could feel the words on the tip of his tongue. 

And Adrien knew his buttons. Curse tickling. Swift pokes to Nino’s side and he was a squirming mess on the floor. 

“Dude! Stop!” 

“Not until you tell me!” 

Tears welled up in Nino’s eyes as he laughed and cried and wiggled to shield his sides from Adrien’s assault. “Marinette has a crush on you!”

The poking immediately stopped. “What?”

“Nothing.” Nino recovered and sat back on the couch. “I didn’t say anything. I didn’t tell you anything. If Alya asks, you heard it from Juleka. I want nothing to do with this.”

They eventually went back to playing their game, a light blush creeping up Adrien’s neck. 

\-----

“Chat Noir is totally in love with Ladybug though. Marinette, look. He loves her.”

“How would you know, Alya?”

“Because he looks at her in exactly the same way you look at Adrien.” 

“That means nothing.” Marinette played on her phone and tried to ignore the fact that Alya was pacing around her room, emphatically gesturing to accentuate her rantings. 

“Oh, so you’re not in love with him? Do you deny that you have the world’s biggest crush on Adrien Agreste?”

“I do.” Alya scoffed. “I’m sure someone’s had a bigger crush.” Marinette smiled through a painful blush. 

“Not anyone that we know.” Alya sat on Marinette’s butt where she was lying on the chaise and shoved her phone in her face, showing all of the pictures she had compiled of Chat in press conferences and private moments that Alya had no right to have pictures of. “Look, girl. Look at his face. He’s got it bad.”

Reluctantly, Marinette looked. In one picture that must have been taken after a patrol, Ladybug and Chat Choir were sitting at the edge of a roof, watching the sunset. The light washed over them and made their skin look rosy and flawless. Not that Chat needed it. He always had clear, model skin. The golden light sparkled in Chat’s eyes as he looked at her, at Ladybug. 

Marinette hated to admit it. But maybe Alya was right.

\-----

Nino wanted to pull his hair out. He had to deal with Marinette/Ladybug and Adrien/Chat Noir more and more recently. He had suddenly become their sole confidant, complaining about their love lives and crushes and the fact that they were superheroes all the time. Nino had taken to turning his phone off as soon as he came home to avoid their contact. But that just meant that he had superheroes knocking at his window at all hours of the night. It was better to talk to them over the phone. 

Why didn’t they just tell each other? It would make it so much easier for everyone. Especially him. They all had crushes on each other. Marinette/Ladybug on Adrien, Adrien/Chat Noir on Ladybug. Everything would be so good if they just revealed themselves to each other and then they could talk to each other about how much they loved each other and they wouldn't have to come to him. 

It was the worst when they were at school. Marinette had been so painfully she around Adrien for the first months, but now she blushed behind him everywhere he went, following like a puppy until Alya interrupted her pining. She was a Ladybug, right? Just talk to him!

But Adrien was no better. In fact, he was worse. Those stupid rom coms and animes that he watched made him a little dramatic, and he had erected a shrine to Ladybug in a spare closet in his room. It was creepy. He talked about her all the time, mostly to Nino, because he wanted him to suffer. 

And now both of them knew the secret of the other’s crushes. Marinette’s love for Adrien, Adrien's love for Ladybug. They had both told him of that dilemma. Because Adrien didn’t want to hurt Marinette’s feelings, and of course Marinette didn’t want to hurt her partner, Chat’s feelings, so everything was a mess. 

Nino thought of different ways to pull them together. Could he set a trap? PRetend to be an akuma and make them take off their transformations and reveal themselves to each other mid-battle so they could make out in peace?

Or he could lock LAdybug and CHat Noir in a closet and make them confront each other until their transformations wore off. Or the opposite. How long would it take for Marinette to admit her love for Adrien if they were locked in a room for twenty four hours with no sun or food?

Was that cruel? 

No more cruel than what Nino was going through. 

Then Nino had an idea. 

It was a good one. 

\-----

Marinette was supposed to meet Nino in five minutes, but she was having trouble getting away from her parents. 

When she finally managed to get away, she was late. She swung as quickly as possible to get where she needed to be. Nino said he would be on a rooftop near the Seine, and she found the place easily. 

There was a little table set up with a white tablecloth and candles. The view of the Seine was beautiful, the light of the city bouncing off of the water. It was a perfect night, too, just a slight breeze to sway the flames of the candles. 

“Nino?” she called as she landed, looking around. “Are you here?”

“My Lady?” Chat Noir landed just after she did, just as confused. “What are you doing here?” 

“Nino told me to come.”

“He told me to, too. What’s going on?”

“What’s going on,” Nino’s voice came from the deep shadows at the edge of the roof, where Nino walked up a ladder and deposited himself on the roof. “Is that I’m done. I never wanted to know your guys’ secrets in the first place, and you decided that I was gonna be your therapist for all things, and I’m done. So I’ve brought you guys here with an ultimatum.”

“Nino…” Ladybug’s voice was almost dangerous. 

“You guys are going to sit. And talk. Without your transformations.”

“Nino!” Chat called. “You know why we can’t do that.”

“No, I really don’t. See, I know who both of you are. I know that you guys can, but you’re both too stubborn to see that. I set this up because you both need to come to grips with reality. You guys already like each other, and this whole situation is just messed up. So I, the only one who knows who you guys really are, and, I have to say, the expert in your lives by now, am here to clean up the mess.”

The three stood meters away from each other, staring between each other. A long silence stretched between them. 

“Nino, we can’t.”

“You can, and you will. I may sound like a big dick, but if you don’t do it yourself, I’m gonna do it for you. And I really don’t want to get punched so I’d rather you guys do it yourself. Really. I would kind of really like to not get punched.” Nino took a slight step away, his hands coming up defensively. 

Chat and Ladybug looked at each other for a moment. 

“Well, my Lady. It looks like we’ve come to a stalemate.”

Nino bounced on his heels, hoping the plan worked. If it didn’t, he had a feeling he would get punched. A lot. 

Marinette - Ladybug - stood silently, a frown tugging at the sides of her lips. “Nino. Could we have a moment, please?”

Nino was relieved to get a pardon. “Yup. I’ll be - yup. Bye.” He retreated back down the ladder he had been hiding at the bottom of. He listened intently to the two speaking in hushed whispers, but couldn't make out anything that they were saying. He waited. 

And waited. 

Until he saw the flash of green and pink light that he knew to be the light of transformation. And he listened. 

“You’re Ladybug?!”

“You’re Chat?!”

Nino gave himself a high five and a sigh of relief. “Finally.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Marinette and Chat Noir are rejected by the loves of their lives, and they find solace in unexpected places.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on this comic by emzurl.tumblr.com: http://emzurl.tumblr.com/post/153201034826/if-it-comes-down-to-this-im-not-going-to-be-able 
> 
> I have always been obsessed with this comic, and I wanted to write something about it.

“I love you!” Marinette finally blurted out, her lips tripping over themselves so the words came out louder than she wanted them to. 

Adrien looked shocked. He hadn’t expected a declaration of love from one of his best friends, and he couldn't help his eyes from going wide and his mouth from dropping. A couple seconds of confused eye contact between them ended with Adrien turning away, lifting a hand to scratch at the hairs at the back of his neck. 

He searched for words. 

“I’m sorry, Marinette. But, I’m- I’m in love with... someone else.” He couldn't bring himself to make eye contact with her, and he forced himself to walk away, leaving Marinette reeling in her place.  
_____

“I love you!” Chat’s usual sly and confident banter was replaced with a yearning Ladybug had never seen in him before. 

He wanted her to say it back. And she felt like she should. 

Despite her recent rejection by Adrien, she still felt her heart reaching out towards him. The irrational part of her brain said that he just needed some time to love her, but the rational part told her to move on. 

For the moment, she let her hope hold on. 

“I’m sorry, Chat.” She felt Adrien’s own words form in her mouth. “I’m in love with someone else.” Before she allowed herself to turn around and see her heartbreak reflected on his face, she swung her yoyo into the night and disappeared.  
_____

Marinette detransformed on her balcony and sat with a huff on one of the lawn chairs she had dragged through the skylight. Her little terrace was covered in plants, roses and succulents, greenery and baby’s breath, and a few sprigs of peppermint and catnip here and there to act as bug repellants. 

Half of the flowers were in bloom in the warm, mid-spring evening. She turned on the twinkling fairy lights which wrapped around the balcony railing so she could better appreciate the blooms in the dying light of the day. 

She watched the sun fall below the horizon. The sky slowly melted from blue to orange and pink, and fade into an indigo-black. The city of lights held true to its name and flooded the lower horizon with a golden haze, almost eliminating the need for her lights. 

Her eyes closed on their own and she felt herself drifting to sleep. It had been a long day. 

A rustling above her made her eyes snap to attention. Green, iridescent eyes stared down at her from the roof of her house. 

“Princess, I’m sorry. Did I wake you?” Chat climbed down from the roof and gave Marinette some room. 

“No, you just startled me is all.” Chat nodded and turned to face the lights of Paris. His body was haloed in the golden lights, and she could distinctly see the slight droop of his shoulders as he leaned on the rails. “Are you alright?” She stood and walked over to him. 

He shuffled somewhat uncomfortably and avoided eye contact. When she leaned over the rails to try to look at him, he turned away. With one fluid movement, he threw his legs over the railing and sat like a gargoyle next to her. She knew the answer to her question already. He wasn’t alright, really. Neither was she. 

Chat didn't quite know why he came, but her question startled him. Why would she be so willing to ask if he was okay, when he knew that she was upset about her own rejection by none other than his alter ego? He turned to face her and looked her up and down. She wore the same clothes she had worn that day at school. Her blue eyes sparkled almost silver in the lights of the city. 

He chuckled darkly and decided he might as well vent. “I got rejected by the love of my life today.” 

She averted her gaze to watch the city twinkle. “Me too.” The corners of her lips twitched up to offer him a comforting smile. He took it in stride and sighed deeply. She followed his lead. 

“What a day, huh?” he asked, and she laughed despite herself. 

“Not bad, in retrospect,” she said through her grin. “The weather was nice.”

“True.”

“School was easy. At least the parts of it that I was awake for.” Chat laughed appreciatively. 

“Another akuma was defeated without any casualties.”

“Very true. Nice job on that, by the way.” She nudged his shoulder with her own.

“It’s nothing. It’s mostly my lady who does the work.”

Marinette shook her head. “That’s not true. Sure, she purifies the akuma, but she’d be nothing without you, Chat. How many times have you saved her life and vice versa? You’re a team.” 

Chat’s heart warmed and for the first time, the two met eyes without any awkwardness. They shared a moment of silent appreciation for each other before turning back to look at the horizon. 

“Thank you,” Chat muttered. Marinette only nodded in response. He began tapping his claws on the metal railing, keeping an even, quiet beat to the night. She breathed deeply. The wind blew her hair around her face, and she undid her pigtails to tie her hair up in a bun. Her bangs still fluttered softly in the wind, but she didn’t have a pin to hold them back at the moment, so she let them hang around her face. Some pieces that didn’t make it into the hair band fell to frame her face. She tucked them behind her ears, but they occasionally fell out due to the wind. 

She looked back up to where Chat was sitting, and found him staring at her. His mouth hung open slightly, and his eyes had gone wide. The gently flashing lights that tied around the rail he sat on shimmered in his thin pupils. His ears, which she learned expressed his emotions more than any other characteristic through years of partnership, were pointed forward and perked up. His posture had stiffened like he was surprised, but he was still relaxed next to her. 

Instinctively, she brushed her hair behind her ear again. “What?”

He shook his head of his surprise. A faint blush was just visible under his mask in the low light of the evening. “Nothing…. I’ve just - I’ve never seen your hair up like that.”

She touched the base of her neck where her hairline just began and pulled at some baby hairs. “Oh yeah. I like my pigtails, but when it’s too windy they get in my face, you know?” 

Chat smiled at her. “I like it.”

A creeping blush spread from Marinette’s ears to her cheeks. She could feel the heat flow to cover her entire face, and she was suddenly grateful for the low light. She forgot for a moment that Chat had excellent night vision, and he snuck a peek at the flush that came to her cheeks with a smug smile. “Thanks,” she whispered. It was too low for most people to hear, but she knew his heightened senses would pick it up. 

Another gust of wind came from nowhere and pushed her hair out from behind her ears. She went to brush them back and Adrien found himself wanting to do it for her. Anything to get a little closer to her. He didn’t know where the urge came from. It was as sudden as the wind, but it pushed him to inch closer. The hand that gripped the railing to keep his balance brushed against her elbow when she leaned forward. Neither of them moved.

Chat found himself looking around the little garden Marinette had set up on her balcony. He recognized a few of the flowers, but most of them were foreign to him. He knew the names of maybe two or three varieties, but there seemed to be hundreds of different types blooming in the spring, their petals gently swaying in the breeze. 

He bent over to sniff the closest pot to him, and smelled something tantalizingly familiar. His eyes grazed over the pots, looking for the flower that belonged to the smell. The search brought him several pots down, and he began digging gently at the pot filled with what he thought were carnations. 

He didn’t notice that Marinette had crept up behind him to look at what he was doing. She watched over his shoulder and saw him pawing at the pot. 

“What’re you looking for?”

Chat startled and bumped her chest with his back. His head came within centimeters of colliding with hers. 

“Are you okay?” Chat almost yelled, and his hands came to hover around her as if to prevent her from breaking apart by sheer force of will. 

Marinette giggled and nodded. “I’m fine, silly kitty.” She glanced over his shoulder at the pot he had been inspecting. “What did you find over there?”

“Oh, nothing,” he said. 

Marinette walked around him and spotted what he had been so intent upon. “Oh my god!” she began giggling. 

“What?” Chat turned to her and looked between her smiling face and the pot. Her laughter only grew. 

“Chat!” 

“What!” 

She reached into the pot and sorted through the many petals of leaves until she found the right stem and picked a couple of leaves. “Do you know what this is?”

He sniffed the air and unconsciously raised his hand to grab it from her. “No. What is it?” He stuck it in his mouth and began chewing. Marinette could barely contain her laughter. 

“It’s catnip,” she snorted. 

Adrien froze and realized that he had stuck it in his mouth. He pulled the stem from his mouth and spat out the leaves. “What?” 

“It’s catnip.” 

He swung his legs back over the rail and stood. “Why do you have catnip in your plants?”

“It’s a bug deterrent. I don’t like pests hanging around my flowers.” She snatched the wilted stem from his hand and tossed it back into the plants. “But it seems to attract a different kind of pest,” she said, softly pushing his shoulder.

“Princess! You wound me.” He clutched his shoulder and slumped to the side like an injured warrior. 

“Oh, you’ll be fine.”

He stumbled and fell on all fours, coughing. “The attack was fatal.” 

Marinette couldn't stop herself from giggling. “Get up, tomcat.” 

Chat sprawled himself across the floor, taking the time to make a more dramatic death scene. He curled in on himself only to stretch back out like he was convulsing. His clawed hands flexed and grabbed at his shoulder while he arched his back. When he had finally died, he lay on his back, taking up most of the floor space on the small terrace. 

“Chat!” Marinette complained. 

Adrien peaked up at her through a barely-opened eye. “I’m dead, princess. I must be resuscitated.” 

Marinette came down on her knees next to him and hovered over him. “What ever must I do to save the famous Hero of Paris?” 

“Well, princess. It seems to roles have been reversed. Now the princess must kiss the knight in shining armor to break the spell and wake him from his deathly slumber.” Chat Noir closed his eyes and listened to Marinette giggle. Despite the day he had had, she made him feel better. He found he regretted turning her down. Even if he didn’t love her like she loved him, it would have felt better to be with someone who liked him as much as she did.

Much to his shock, he felt her lips press against his cheek. His eyes shot open and he saw Marinette leaning over him, a coy smile plastered across her face. “Did it work?” she asked.

He saw the stubborn strand of hair had fallen from its place yet again. It must have been the catnip, but he found himself curling his fingers through her hair and tucking the loose strand back into its place. 

Marinette didn’t expect the sudden show of affection, but found she liked the feeling of his pointed claws scraping gently along her skin. She shivered. 

He wasn’t Adrien, she reminded herself, but it felt so much better to be close to him than anyone else at that moment. His fingers still brushed deftly along her hairline. She leaned into his hand, his warm palm caressing her cheek. 

Chat Noir leaned forward and carefully placed a kiss on her lips. 

The half second of contact sent another shiver down Marinette’s spine. She didn’t quite know how to react; she didn’t know how to decipher the feelings that were swirling around her chest. 

Chat Noir was horrified that he had just done what he did. They were both upset about being turned down. But it felt like more than that. Now that the feelings for Ladybug had been pushed away, he found something creeping into his chest that spelled out the name of Marinette. 

But the look of confusion on her face told him that it was the wrong thing to do. He regretted it instantly. “Mari, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-”

She cut him off with a solid kiss. She miscalculated slightly and ended up kissing the corner of his mouth. The weight that she put into leaning down forced her lips to slip of the side of his face and she came crashing down on top of him to try to keep her balance. 

“Whoops!” Marinette said, her face burning fire engine red as she sat back up and drew away from him. Chat sat up along with her, keeping his eyes level with hers. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. 

Chat drew his fingers back up along her ear, and pressed his palm yet again on her cheek. The warmth of his fingers melted her. “Don’t be, princess.” 

This time, they both leaned in to find each other’s lips. Chat’s fingers found their way to the back of her head, tangling in the loosely tied up hair. Marinette pushed into him. One of her legs swung around him until she was sitting on his lap. She found it much easier to kiss him here, and she tangled her hands in his hair and his found their way to the small of her back. 

With a deep breath, they pulled away from each other, stars in their eyes. 

After a long moment, Chat smiled. “Princess, you’ve broken the curse! I’m alive!” 

Marinette shook her head with a roll of her eyes. “Silly kitty,” she said, and leaned back into him.

**Author's Note:**

> Based on this Really Good Thing:
> 
> http://zoe-oneesama.tumblr.com/post/147673935569/the-hectic-midpost-battle-revealP


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